Author: foodbetterbegood

I am a big fan of easy, lazy just blitz in the blender smoothies. The fruits I pick for my smoothies are easy to process without too much peeling or picking seeds. I prefer to have smoothies in the mornings. Sometimes I have the smoothie as the breakfast itself. I have a big jar of it mind you. Other times, if I am sharing it with Jagan and drinking only a small glass of it, I have the smoothie alongside my breakfast. All the smoothie recipes below are for 1-2 people. I do not believe anyone needs a recipe to make a juice or smoothie. At-least not yet. It is so much easier to sit where we are and scroll through the list of juices and order one than to lift the bum from the seat, walk over to the kitchen, peel that fruit, chop it, dump in the mixie with milk and honey and blend and pour into glasses and then wash that blender. But I urge you to lift the bum from the seat and make the smoothie yourself because you’ll eat more fruit if you make it yourself, you can control the amount of sugar in your smoothie and you would have lifted your bum. I hope these smoothies below inspire you to make your own delicious smoothies. There are just a few things to keep in mind. Use soft, ripe fruits for your smoothies. Mix and match any type of fruit. Anything goes. Avoid citrus fruits if you’re going to be using milk or yogurt as the base. Your smoothie can get curdled. You can use water, milk or yogurt as the base for your juice or smoothie. Have chilled milk and yogurt in your fridge at all times. Always use only chilled milk in your smoothies. Hot milk will curdle too when blended too long. You can use yogurt instead of milk if you prefer a slight tangy undertone. There are plenty of ways to sweeten your smoothie. Honey, brown sugar, powdered jaggery, jaggery syrup or just plain sugar. I’ve tried all of these at different times. Honey is very light sweet, so you may need to add more of it if you have a sweet tooth. The brown sugar adds a lovely caramel kind of note which I love in a banana smoothie. Sometimes I add just plain sugar too if I need straight... Continue reading →

You know how our minds are tuned to think of certain things certain ways but there is usually a simple, kinder explanation. If the woman in the house is sitting and scrolling on her phone, she must be whiling away time gossiping with friends, ignoring kids & household work. Or The woman may be relaxing after finishing her chores. If she dresses well, she probably doesn’t cook well or take care of the house. Or She likes to dress well. If she doesn’t dress well, she is a slouch. Or She is not really interested in dressing up. If she has had a successful singing career, she must have used the men around her. Or She may sing really well. If the guy doesn’t drink alcohol at the party, he is a loser, he must be scared of his parents/wife. Or He may not need alcohol to have fun. If the woman is drinking alcohol, she must be a rich, arrogant, bitch. Or The woman may need alcohol to get over her heartbreak, to get over Gemini Ganesan. If the woman watches movies all night, she is a no-good mother. Or That’s the only time she gets the remote. Vijay movies are a waste of time. Or This movie of Vijay is not great, but Vijay is a wonderful actor. Foodbetterbegood has only a few thousand followers. So it is no good. Or This little gem has not been discovered yet. If it is tasty, it can’t really be healthy. If it tastes bad, it must be good for me. Or Anything in moderation is fine. And if the body really needs the biryani, it probably knows best. Corn spinach sandwich may not at first sound like the healthiest option, not as healthy as Quinoa bowl or cabbage salad. However corn spinach sandwich actually has everything going for it. It is by far the tastiest way to eat spinach. Corn is everybody’s favourite and the creamy sauce is so light and easy to put together. Use whole wheat bread to up your fibre intake and a healthier option. There. You have yourself a healthy and tasty sandwich! Enjoy! Print Recipe Creamy Corn & Spinach Sandwich Light yet creamy, tasty yet healthy this corn & spinach sandwich is super quick to put together! Prep Time 5 minutes Cook Time 15 minutes Servings 4 sandwiches Ingredients 1 cup, packed Spinach, washed and... Continue reading →

I hope your Deepavali preparations are going great. Whether it is making 3 types of sweets and 4 types of murukkus, whether it is buying all of this in stores and putting your feet up at home, whether it is shopping till you’re knocked out and colour-blind and squeezed thin, whether it is sleeping in to shut out the chaos, whether it is buying all the “sara-vedi” (Red fort electric crackers) that you can afford, whether it is about making plans to visit all the relatives or staying in to avoid all of them or whether it is about focusing all your energy into getting your hands on Sarkar tickets; whatever you’re doing, however you’re doing.. I hope you’re having a good time. The honourable supreme court has so thoughtfully provided the 2 hour window for bursting crackers. As a mark of respect for this landmark ruling, some friends plan to burst atleast one bijli every hour. Salute these great people. Now there are only 2 kinds of people – the ones who have tickets to Sarkar and the ones who don’t. I don’t. I hope those who’re watching this week can keep their spoilers to themselves for some time. Until l watch. Deepavali is definitely the time for good food and indulgence. Just remember to eat small portions, single helpings and to eat slowly. You won’t feel guilty later on and you won’t slip from the 100 days of healthy eating challenge. I’ll be making Mutton korma and idli too this Deepavali. I am just going to make sure to eat a small portion of it. If you’re looking for a healthy, yummy fried rice recipe look no further than this Nasi Goreng made with brown basmati rice, loads of veggies, sprouts for some added crunch and protein and an absolutely irresistible hot-sweet flavour blend. Brown basmati rice is nuttier and slightly chewier. It is shorter and stouter than regular white basmati rice but is just as flavourful. Brown rice packs more fibre and is a good alternative to regular white rice. You can substitute chicken with Tofu or paneer for a veggie version of Nasi Goreng. Nasi Goreng is hot and sweet and everything in between. It’s a complete meal in itself. Nasi Goreng is one of my very favourite dishes. This Nasi Goreng with brown basmatic rice is healthier and just as yummy. Try it. I am... Continue reading →

Waking up 40 minutes before the school van arrival is the status quo at home. I wake up with a start, shriek in panic which serves to wake up the kids and get them scurrying to the bathroom to escape from their crazy mother. I scrunch my hair on top of my head and go straight to the kitchen while frantically working out lunch ideas in my mind. I don’t always have a plan. Today was one such 40 minute frantic cooking session. I managed to make this egg-cucumber hung yogurt sandwich and a simple lunch and pack in time. I obviously did not have the forethought of leaving yogurt in the strainer overnight to make hung yogurt. I brute forced yogurt into hung yogurt in 20 minutes. I wouldn’t recommend that to you. This sandwich is so unbelievably easy and quick otherwise, it is great for rushed mornings, as a snack or as a last minute addition to a menu. This is an un-toasted sandwich, the kind you make with soft bread. I used soft whole wheat bread. I am calling this a healthy meal because there’s no butter and no toasting. I used hung yogurt instead of calorie laden mayonnaise and whole wheat bread instead of white bread. You’ll not miss the mayonnaise though. The hung yogurt is creamy and delicious. These sandwiches are best eaten as soon as they are made. Enjoy! Print Recipe Cucumber egg hung yogurt sandwich Creamy, delicious cucumber egg sandwich with hung yogurt and none of the guilt! Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 20 minutes Servings 6 sandwiches Ingredients 12 slices Whole wheat bread, crusts removed1/2 cup Yogurt, strained overnight to thick hung curd1/2 Lemon, juicedSalt to taste3/4 tsp Black pepper powder1/2 tsp Sugar1 Organic cucumber, chopped4 Hard boiled eggs, chopped Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 20 minutes Servings 6 sandwiches Ingredients 12 slices Whole wheat bread, crusts removed1/2 cup Yogurt, strained overnight to thick hung curd1/2 Lemon, juicedSalt to taste3/4 tsp Black pepper powder1/2 tsp Sugar1 Organic cucumber, chopped4 Hard boiled eggs, chopped Instructions Line a strainer with a cheesecloth and place inside a container. Pour yogurt into the cheesecloth lined strainer and place inside the fridge. Leave the setup overnight. In the morning the liquid would have drained away and you should have thick hung curd in the strainer. Scoop the hung curd into a large bowl and... Continue reading →

There was a time when I didn’t consider porridge normal food. It was too boring, too good. It must be for sick days. That was my notion. Like most other things in life, this too has come to pass. With age, with excess weight and with the constant deluge of over-the-top tasty foods, I’ve come to appreciate mellow, subdued, good for the body, good for next-day-morning foods. Did you know barley is packed with nutrients like potassium, Vitamin B6 and folate make it great for heart health? Barley is an excellent source of fiber, which helps lower the total amount of cholesterol in the blood. Barley also contains Selenium which is not present in most foods. It plays a role in liver enzyme function and helps detoxify some cancer-causing compounds in the body. Barley is also useful in maintaining a healthy weight. I’ve taken a liking to porridge now. I find it comforting and satisfying. Also I am a sucker for sweet breakfasts. This naturally sweetened barley porridge is a great breakfast to start the day. The recipe I am going to share with you today will make barley porridge making a breeze. Barley generally takes a long time to make. So I dump the barley in a pressure cooker along with dates and cook them both together – 2 tasks in one shot. Barley is cooked through and so are the dates – all ready to be blended into a creamy porridge. The dates lend a lovely rounded sweetness without being cloyingly sweet. If you desire more sweetness, you can add some brown sugar or honey to the porridge. Adding just a pinch of salt balances the flavours and highlights the sweetness. You’re less likely to make the dish too sweet when you’ve added a pinch of salt. The toppings are everything. Here’s where you add crunch, texture and interest to the porridge. I went with toasted, slivered almonds, sliced cherries and bananas. You can go with any toppings of your choice – toasted cashews, chopped dates, chopped fruit, a drizzle of honey, anything you fancy! Enjoy! Print Recipe Barley porridge | Naturally sweetened, made in a pressure cooker This naturally sweetened barley porridge is a great breakfast to start the day! Healthy and yummy! Prep Time 5 minutes Cook Time 35 minutes Servings 4 people Ingredients 1 cup Barley4 cups Water1-1/2 cup Milk1-1/2 cup Dates1... Continue reading →

Now as soon as I say that the recipe I am going to share today is Curd rice, I can imagine Maamiyaars and Gayathris in families (gossip-specialists & critics in families) turning up their noses. They’d compare me with their daughter, themselves, their maid or that horrible character in the TV serial (Indian TV serials have only 2 types of characters – saccharine good & perfect or deviously bad & empty) and profile me as the lazy woman who makes a big deal of a simple curd rice. I believe every dish, however simple can be exquisite or bleh. A fried egg is simple. It can also be the most beautiful thing – lacy slightly browned edges, soft set whites holding a jiggly yolk with a smattering of freshly ground pepper. Or it could be something else. I also do not believe the single recipe dish. There are always numerous ways to make a dish. I am always on the lookout to make a dish better, to put a different twist on it, to make it easier or quicker. My complaint with curd rice was always that it was either too runny or too thick and lumpy. It did not stay the way it was packed. By lunch time, it would have transformed into something else. Sometimes the curd rice turned too sour. If I tried to control the tang by adding too little curd, it tasted too flat. The rice had to be soft too – not pureed in a mixie, baby food kind of mash but pongal kind of creamy soft. The one trick I am going to share today will solve all your curd rice problems, I promise. Cook rice in a pot of water till it is cooked through and the rice grains are full length. Then add milk and cook the rice in milk until creamy and soft and pongal like. This step makes all the difference. Cooking the rice in milk ensures that the rice remains creamy, luscious and soft. The milk also offsets the tang in the curd brilliantly to make it just as tangy enough as you want it. Towards the end when you’re tasting and adjusting the seasoning, feel free to add in a spoon of curd or milk to achieve your right amount of tang. There is no right or wrong here. Since the rice has already absorbed a lot... Continue reading →

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Welcome to Foodbetterbegood!
I am Jayanthi. I love to cook. I am the one who lingers on at a function to have a word with the caterer to ask him for the vathal kuzhambu recipe. I amass recipes and I covet my knives.
I love a good story. I believe everyone does. If you love stories, if you love good food, you are at the right place.
You’ll see snatches of my writing, my DIY attempts and antique love in this space. You’ll see good food and simple recipes and plenty of stories. Foodbetterbegood is my diary.